Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
imitation is the highest form of flattery...

I certainly do agree with the sentiments expressed that not every new product/competitor is purposely trying to copy Apple's designs, nor is Apple always the "originator" with an industrial design concept simply because it's product reached the marketplace first (although being first does help one earn that claim), however with all that said, the bottom line is this: that Acer sure does look awfully similar to the MacBook Air, whether it was intentional or not.
 
Unless you designed the MBA and/or get royalties for every one sold, who cares?
 
When you mix it all together, yes. -_-

You really don't think it's a copycat? I'm not saying they should be sued or pulled from the market.

Although if Acer WAS sued for this one I wouldn't oblige honestly. It's too close. Just like how the Tab 10.1 is too close to the iPad 2. The other UltraBooks however look great and differentiate from the Air.

I'm not arguing that it doesn't look like the MBA, but apple really just designs simple and sleek products (at least since there aluminum designs). There's only so many ways to make something simple without "copying". That's all I'm trying to say.
 
This.

I think its pretty obvious that Apple wasn't the first on almost anything. If anything I would credit the first ultra portable laptop to sony z series years ago. The point of the thread was to show that up coming ultra books are taking a more "if you can't beat them, join them" approach to their industrial design.

I suppose I should edit the first post to say something along the lines of "Look at another company with upcoming ultra book designs and look at how similar they are to the Macbook Air. Couldn't they have thought of a design that is unique to their own?"

My, to the point, comment seems to have stirred the pot with a few people.


But then where were all these "Sony Vaio" clones back in 2004? The point is that for the past 5-10 years, it has taken Apple to turn something into a trend. If Sony does it, maybe Apple follows, but if Apple does something, then others follow.

No less than John C. Dvorak (anything but an Apple fan) has observed this. He used to wax poetic about his original NEC Ultralite (with its thin size and 1988 equivalent of flash storage), and lament how future generations got thicker and heavier. He has praised the MacBook Air for pushing the industry into the direction where it could have been and should have been going in for the past few years. Instead, PC manufacturers clung to the notion that consumers preferred cheaper, heavier notebooks and neglected the segment entirely while Steve Jobs pushed the envelope over the past 3.5 years.
 
still runs windows ... many people buy Apple for the OSX alone

Judging by OS X's market share, that group of people is fairly small.

operating_systems_july_2011.jpg


http://www.techspot.com/news/44902-windows-xp-usage-finally-falls-below-50-mark.html
 
Note how they copied the trackpad, the thinness, the color, the keyboard, the hinge, ...


buttonless trackpad is a buttonless trackpad
thinness is a state, a measurement, surely two things being thin is not copied
color, grey silver is grey silver
keyboard, chic-let black keyboards are everywhere
hinge - bar color similarity it's a hinge that has to be like that because of its slim design. Not exactly a copy.


Basically if a sleek thin silver looking laptop with a chic-let keyboard is the new fashion - they are all going to look much of a muchness by design limitations of creating a sleek thin silver laptop with a chic-let keyboard.

All of these are following a reference from Intel and of course will then all bare remarkable similarity design concept wise.





The MBA still has OSX which at the end of the day is the most important thing when it comes to 'mac' ownership surely, rather than a glorified pissing contest over the fence with pc users.
 
also the whole bashing on acer copying stuff is just crazy. Apple has copied several brands before, and they copy apple. It's just how it works.

And even Steve himself has admitted this: "Good artists copy; great artists steal"


I think we all agree that Acer might have gotten a few ideas from MBA but that is how the business works. It's not like Apple invented the idea of ultraportables along with all other ideas and products they currently sell.
 
But then where were all these "Sony Vaio" clones back in 2004? The point is that for the past 5-10 years, it has taken Apple to turn something into a trend. If Sony does it, maybe Apple follows, but if Apple does something, then others follow.

No less than John C. Dvorak (anything but an Apple fan) has observed this. He used to wax poetic about his original NEC Ultralite (with its thin size and 1988 equivalent of flash storage), and lament how future generations got thicker and heavier. He has praised the MacBook Air for pushing the industry into the direction where it could have been and should have been going in for the past few years. Instead, PC manufacturers clung to the notion that consumers preferred cheaper, heavier notebooks and neglected the segment entirely while Steve Jobs pushed the envelope over the past 3.5 years.

It wasn't Sony's fault that it didn't work out in 2004. Fact of the matter was the processor offerings by both Intel and AMD were not sufficient (alongside RAM/graphics solutions and other things including battery tech).

Apple simply jumped on the idea and produced the Macbook Air the moment the perfect hardware was available. Apple is good at that: They wait on an idea, and they pounce on it once everything is about right.

Apple does manage to make these things more popular. But honestly, ultrabooks would be popular with or without Apple. Apple just jumps in at the right time when the tech is ripe, and things come naturally. Add in the fact that they have an excellent marketing campaign, and blammo... instant success every time.

So I wouldn't give Apple all the credit for making these things successful. They just allow the gravity of the tech intensify before they jump into the ring, and everything falls perfectly into place. Of course they play their part and are top-notch, but I just mean they know when to do things. What I'm trying to get across is that some people give them a tad bit too much credit: Intel and AMD had to reach a certain point where this ultraportable tech was available... RAM had to become cheap enough... hard drives and SSD tech had to mature... etc, etc, etc. And most of that has nothing to do with Apple.
 
Apple simply jumped on the idea and produced the Macbook Air the moment the perfect hardware was available. Apple is good at that: They wait on an idea, and they pounce on it once everything is about right.

Apple does manage to make these things more popular. But honestly, ultrabooks would be popular with or without Apple. Apple just jumps in at the right time when the tech is ripe, and things come naturally. Add in the fact that they have an excellent marketing campaign, and blammo... instant success every time.

And it took Apple roughly 2.5 years to make MBA what it is now. The first MBAs weren't that great; they ran hot, battery life was low, SSD required a mortgage etc. It wasn't until 2010 when Apple made MBA mainstream.
 
buttonless trackpad is a buttonless trackpad
thinness is a state, a measurement, surely two things being thin is not copied
color, grey silver is grey silver
keyboard, chic-let black keyboards are everywhere
hinge - bar color similarity it's a hinge that has to be like that because of its slim design. Not exactly a copy.


Basically if a sleek thin silver looking laptop with a chic-let keyboard is the new fashion - they are all going to look much of a muchness by design limitations of creating a sleek thin silver laptop with a chic-let keyboard.

All of these are following a reference from Intel and of course will then all bare remarkable similarity design concept wise.





The MBA still has OSX which at the end of the day is the most important thing when it comes to 'mac' ownership surely, rather than a glorified pissing contest over the fence with pc users.

Yes but together as a package, this is a copy of the MacBook Air. Whether it's something to bash Acer for or not doesn't change that it is a copy.
 
And it took Apple roughly 2.5 years to make MBA what it is now. The first MBAs weren't that great; they ran hot, battery life was low, SSD required a mortgage etc. It wasn't until 2010 when Apple made MBA mainstream.

Exactly. It wasn't until 2010 that the hardware came out to make the Macbook Air what it is. Apple was only able to make it aesthetically nice, and well-made in general design. They had to wait (just as every other computer designing company did) for better processors and internals in general.

Apple jumped on board at a relatively good time though. They released their product in time to make it familiar so that when the right hardware came out, they had already matured the product over a couple years. (And they didn't have the Macbook Air around for too many years before great hardware was released for a better Air, so there wasn't a stigma against it).

Just saying. They didn't make ultraportables popular. They simply have a very popular (if not the most popular non-netbook) ultraportable.
 
This is a MacBook Air clone. Just like any knockoff, it's not 100% identical but enough that you know the ressemblance is intentional.

Not sure Apple can sue on this one, but Acer would kind of deserve it if they could. I mean, what's the point of Apple having hired and paying Jony Ive if all companies can benefit from his work. Shouldn't all companies that use his work pay him?

I don't understand why people are arguing about whether Apple invented/popularized the ultraportable laptop. That's not the point, it's the aesthetics that Acer didn't have to copy. Of course Apple can't patent every single detail that make a MacBook Air look like a MacBook Air, since taken individually, every detail ins't that unique. It's the combinaison of each of these details that make this Acer a ripoff. Does anybody here really think that it's just a coincidence and that Acer would have made this laptop if the MacBook Air didn't exist? Yes it's hard to put laws regarding this since it's really up to your judgement and setting a clear limit isn't really possible. But come on, this is not moral. I'd be ashamed to use that computer and rather be seen with a cheap netbook. This makes me lose respect for Acer, and actually makes the real MacBook Air more desirable.

Here, take this purse for example:
displayimage.php


How would you call it? A Louis Vuitton knockoff, that's what it is. However, it doesn't show any LV logo, Louis Vuitton didn't invent the purse, didn't and couldn't put a patent on brown canvas, beige leather straps or repetitive floral pattern. So technically it is not an illegal copy, but still a shameless, immoral knockoff.

Buying is voting. I'd rather encourage the innovators than the parasites. Hence why you won't ever see me rocking fake brands. I don't care if it technically infringes Apple patents or not. It's a moral question, and wouldn't feel comfortable using that computer, and so should Acer for making it.
 
Apple didn't invent any of the individual elements of the MBA design:
- light aluminum casing
- rounded corners
- minimalist, industrial aesthetics
- buttonless trackpad
- contrasting black hinge
- chiclet keyboard

But the package as a whole is unique. If the new Acer didn't have the chiclet keyboard, I'd be less inclined to call them rip-off artists. But that throws it over the edge IMO.

I think its rather obvious that they are trying to mimic an overall design concept that's obviously proven very successful with consumers.
 
Apple started all of this? Huh? What? Thin laptops didn't exist before Apple's Macbook Air?

Please, educate yourself before you pose a false argument.

It's a freaking thin laptop with a metallic look, a keyboard, and a trackpad. Those are the only similarities. And no, the hinge isn't the same: the screen raises as you pull it out; on the Air, the screen panel dips behind the base and lowers.

I don't get it with all these angry Apple fanboys. They think anything Apple has created is somehow the start of every fad, and everyone to create anything like Apple's products are simply followers. Get this: Just because you use mainly Apple products and mainly only know Apple products doesn't mean the world shares your zealous views.

Ooooh a flat trackpad. How innovative? Come on...

When Windows 8 comes out, if they offer multitouch gestures on a trackpad, multiple desktops, and whatnot... I bet people are going to flock to that and say "omg they copied Apple AGAIN!!!". I mean come on...

But you, yourself have no bias?
If you aren't a "fan" of Apple products why are you here other than to agitate? You feel you have something to defend? If so, at least do it in a polite manner instead of coming across as a bratty buttmunch.

How is this? Apple's newer designs for ultra thin portables have popularized the genre. Others are mimicing the sleak design. I have problem with this since imitation is the highest form of flattery.
 
Well, at least Apple came up with the full-screen app idea for Lion before Microsoft had a chance to copy it.

Oh, wait...

You think simply and crudely making a window bigger with the exact same contents and layout to fill the screen space (Windows) is the same as maximizing an app with the contents laid out to optimize the space in the screen and then applying the idea of its own space so that you can switch to it with a gesture (Mac)?
 
Hey fanboys, Apple copied the Sharp Actius MM10 Muramasa Laptop from 2003.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actius_MM10_Muramasa

Image

Yea, they surely copied the tiny buttons at the bottom edge, the black rectangle (whatever that is), the two pad buttons, the small little trackpad, the non-chiclet keyboard, the angular bump at the back, the top black bar above the display, the hinge -- wow, so many similarities that you can legitimately call it a copy! /s
 
Any company other than Apple thus far who has tried to use a buttonless touchpad has failed. It simply doesn't work well. Either they don't know how or they're too lazy to write drivers that differentiate between scrolling and button presses, and other gestures very well. Try it and you'll see, or look at reviews and almost always they'll mention something about this--asus, lenovo, acer, sony, hp--I've seen reviews that complained about the implementation.

The thinkpad was semi-ruined b/c of their move to this design; now many people only use the pointing stick (trackpoint) on these machines.
 
And the thread goes silent (I agree with you).

Then another fanboy will come in and start spewing garbage again.

I have nothing against Apple. I love Apple. But I have a bone to pick with fanboys who spew misinformation and idiotic comments. They assume everyone is copying Apple without doing any research about anything that came before Apple.

Here's a tip for anyone who wants to state fact: Don't set the bar at Apple and only look forward. Take a moment to look backward and realize that maybe, just maybe, Apple wasn't first for everything. -_-

Not to mention some ideas are simply being raced at. Often times multiple companies want to implement an idea, and Apple is a huge company that is good at that... they simply get to an obvious idea first. Other companies may take longer to implement it well, but they aren't copying Apple, they're simply slower to come to a similar conclusion that everyone was trying to get at.

Thread isn't silent, are you deaf as well as blind? It's only garbage for the blind, I guess, because it's clear as day. Not only can it be plainly seen side by side but the notion of companies not attempting to copy Apple and that they are just late in the game is ludicrous. It's not so much that obviously people want thin gadgets so that's not enough to say it's copying - it's the way it's designed and implemented that makes it egregious enough to be alleged a copy.

Companies are emulating Apple, this is no secret. To think that they're all coming to the same conclusion is bull. It's just coincidence that Apple has consistently come out with their products first (iPod, iPhone, iPad, MBP, MBA) and then others come out with others that look similar afterwards? It's one thing to make a gadget thin. It's another to use the same colors in the same spots, the same kind of tapering, the same keyboard, the same button-less trackpad, etc.

It's like if I wore the same color shirt as you, it's not enough to say I copied you. But if I wore the same color shirt that has the colors in the same spots and had the same pants and shoes are the same brand then, yea, that's pretty darn close.

Apple wasn't first (I repeat: They were not first) with ultraportable laptops or the mp3 player or the touch screen phone but the industrial design of their products or user experience that they did come out with has no doubt been mimicked to a shockingly similar degree. It's too plain to see. I guarantee you that if the iPhone never came out, we would *not* have smartphones as they are today in both industrial design and apps/OS as they work now. If the iPod never came out, we would not have Zune from MS as it is now. If the iPad never came out, we would not have the Galaxy 10.1 as it exists.

Even if what you say is true that the same conclusion was reached - Apple still made it well and popularized it to make it a viable consumer-buying product - they prove that this exact formula is successful. Let's say other companies have a similar "conclusion/formula" but Apple's implementation clearly wins. So guess what? They copy them even one more iota because their formula works and it works better than their own original conclusion.

I'm not particularly saying this is not something companies should do (it's business) but it's quite plain to see that it happens.
 
Last edited:
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.